Method and apparatus for displaying viewing time and TV ratings based on viewer grade

ABSTRACT

A method and an apparatus for displaying the viewing time and TV ratings based on a viewer grade, wherein information on the TV ratings and viewing time is indicated using lamps provided in the external case of the display apparatus. The display apparatus includes an information-analysis unit that analyzes the viewer grade based on user information inputted by a user of the display apparatus and TV ratings by extracting program information from signals broadcasted by a broadcasting station, a ratings-comparison unit that compares the viewer grade with the TV ratings, and a lamp-control unit that lights lamps according to the comparison result.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is based on and claims priority from Korean PatentApplication No. 10-2005-0071436 filed on Aug. 4, 2005 in the KoreanIntellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporatedherein in its entirety by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus fordisplaying the viewing time and TV ratings based on a viewer grade and,more particularly, to a display method and a display apparatus fordisplaying the viewing time and TV ratings based on a viewer grade,whereby information on TV ratings and viewing time is indicated by usinglamps provided in the external case of the display apparatus.

2. Description of the Related Art

TV programs may include violence and sexuality, which are harmful tochildren. Accordingly, various parental control systems to blockunsuitable programs or channels have been developed.

A blocking system using the V-chip or violence-chip, which blocks TVprograms having nudity and violence, has been used in the United Statesin order to inform viewers of ratings of TV programs. The ratings areencoded by a broadcaster using a data format called the extended dataservice (XDS) and the vertical blanking period of a National TelevisionStandards Committee (NTSC) TV signal, more particularly, line 21 of thesecond field of the TV signal. The XDS data format is similar to theclosed-captioning format used in the United States, which is encoded online 21 of the first field of the NTSC TV signal. The XDS andclosed-captioning formats are standards (EIA-608) developed by the U.S.Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). A ratings signal is transmittedalong with each TV program and is read by the V-chip system built ineach TV set manufactured after January 2000. The V-chip system decodesthe data on line 21, compares the decoded data with its permittedratings, and decides whether to block or release the signal.

However, many children's daily lives involve a lot of TV and olderchildren may defy their parents by manipulating the V-chip system when aTV program is forcefully blocked, a channel is changed, or an image isdistorted.

As an alternative, a display, which shows a person's TV viewing history,may be shown in the application form. However, this method requires auser navigating several GUI (Graphical User Interface) steps, which isinconvenient.

Text information has several problems: it takes a long time to read it,it is difficult to read at a glance, only a viewer of the concerned TVprogram can recognize it, and it is not possible to continuously displayit. Further, the problem associated with the viewing time is stillinsoluble.

Accordingly, there is a demand for a method to more naturally guidechildren's TV-watching. A method that allows parents to quickly graspthe TV-watching history of their child is also required.

Korean Unexamined Patent Publication No. 1997-56839 entitled “TV SetEquipped with an Illuminating System” discloses a TV set with a built-inlighting device, whereby the lighting device stays lit for a certainperiod of time after the TV is turned off while a user has been watchingthe TV in the dark. The lighting device is activated depending upon themeasured ambient brightness. However, this invention does not providethe technology to provide information on the viewing time and ratings ofthe TV programs watched by the user, based on a viewer grade, bychanging the color of the lighting device.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides information on viewing time and ratingsof a TV program watched by a viewer, based on a viewer grade, by using aplurality of lamps provided in the external case of a display apparatus.

The present invention further provides convenience to a user inobserving the TV watching history and ratings of the program that iswatched by the user, using a display apparatus (i.e., a TV set).

The present invention will not be limited to the technical objectsdescribed above. Other aspects not described herein will be moredefinitely understood by those in the art from the following detaileddescription.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided anapparatus for displaying viewing time and program ranking based on theviewer grade of a viewer, according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention, which includes an information analysis unit thatanalyzes a viewer grade based on information regarding the user inputtedby the user using an equipped display apparatus and analyzes TV ratingsby gathering program information from broadcasting signals transmittedfrom a broadcasting station, a ratings comparison unit that compares TVratings with a viewer grade and a lamp control unit that lights lamps ofdifferent colors according to the result of the comparison.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provideda method for displaying viewing time and TV ratings based on a viewergrade, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention,which includes inputting information on a user by the user himself whouses the display apparatus, analyzing viewer grade based on the inputteduser's information, analyzing TV ratings by extracting programinformation from broadcasting signals transmitted from a broadcastingstation, comparing TV ratings with the determined viewer grade, andlighting a specific colored lamp according to the result of thecomparison.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects and features of the present invention willbecome more apparent by describing in detail exemplary embodimentsthereof with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the internal construction of adisplay apparatus that displays the viewing time and ratings of aprogram based on a viewer grade according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIGS. 2A and 2B are a set of tables showing information on TV ratingsand the brightnesses of lamps according to the viewing time stored in astorage unit of the display apparatus, according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 3A to 3E are a set of diagrams illustrating arrangements of lampsof the display apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the colors of lamps that are lit basedon TV ratings and the viewing time according to an exemplary embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a method for displaying the viewingtime and TV ratings based on a viewer grade according to anotherexemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the process of determining whichlamps are to be lit based on TV ratings and a viewer grade according toanother exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the process of determining thebrightness of the lamps that are to be lit based on the operating timeof the display apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Advantages and features of the present invention and methods ofaccomplishing the same may by understood more readily by reference tothe following detailed description of the exemplary embodiments and theaccompanying drawings. The present invention may, however, be embodiedin many different forms and should not be construed as being limited tothe exemplary embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these exemplaryembodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough andcomplete and will fully convey the concept of the invention to thoseskilled in the art, and the present invention will only be defined bythe appended claims. Like reference numerals refer to like elementsthroughout the specification.

The present invention will become more apparent by describing in detailexemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the figures presentingblock diagrams or flow charts explaining a display method and apparatusfor displaying TV ratings based on a viewer grade. It should be notedthat the blocks and combinations of blocks of the flow charts can beachieved by computer program instructions. These computer programinstructions are loaded into a general purpose computer, specificcomputer or other processors of data processing apparatuses, which meansthese instructions can produce ways of performing the functionsillustrated in the blocks of the flow charts through computers or otherprocessors of data processing apparatuses. These computer programinstructions can also be stored in a computer or a computer-usable orcomputer-readable memory in order to implement the functions. Theseinstructions can produce systems implementing methods for carrying outthe functions shown in the blocks of the flow charts. Also, the computerprogram instructions can be loaded into a computer or other programmabledata processing apparatus. Therefore, it is possible for suchinstructions to provide steps for performing the functions illustratedin the blocks of the flow charts by generating processes that arecarried out by a computer.

Each block might represent parts of a module, or segments of codecontaining one or more instructions for performing specific logicalfunctions. It should be noted that the functions illustrated in theblocks can be performed in a different order according to alternativeexamples. For example, the functions in the consecutive blocks can beperformed at the same time or in reverse order.

While the following exemplary embodiments of the present inventiondisclose the invention as it relates to a television and TV programming,one of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the invention maybe used in any circumstance in which a user views material.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the internal construction of adisplay apparatus that displays the viewing time and ratings of aprogram based on a viewer grade according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention. Here, the display apparatus 100 may be a digitaltelevision (DTV), a desktop computer or a notebook computer, which canprovide the content of a predetermined moving picture. The presentinvention will be described using a DTV as an example.

The present invention is directed to providing information on theratings and viewing time of a TV program that the child has watched tohis/her parents through the display apparatus 100. However, the presentinvention is not limited to this.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the display apparatus 100 includes asignal-receiving unit 110, an information-input unit 120, aninformation-analysis unit 130, an operating-time-checking unit 140, aratings-comparison unit 150, a lamp-control unit 160, a storage unit170, a display unit 180, and a control unit 190.

The term “unit” used in exemplary embodiments of the present inventionmeans a software component or hardware component such as an ASIC(Application-Specific Integrated Circuit) and an FPGA (FieldProgrammable Gate-Array), which performs a certain role. A “unit” canalso be an addressable storage medium. Thus, “unit” covers a wide rangeof components such as software components, object-oriented softwarecomponents, class components and task components, processes, functions,attributes, procedures, subroutines, segments of program code, drivers,firmware, microcode, circuits, data, database, data structures, tables,arrays, and variables. The functions provided by such components and“units” can be combined by combined components or units, or divided intosub-components or units. Moreover, components and units can be designedto implement one or more CPUs in a device or secure multimedia card.

The signal-receiving unit 110 receives signals broadcasted by abroadcasting station.

The information-input unit 120 receives user information input by a userof the display apparatus 110. The user information includes the age of auser, the genre and viewing time of a TV program, and others. When theuser is a child, his/her parents can input the user information onhis/her behalf.

The information-analysis unit 130 analyzes ratings of the TV programsbroadcasted by a station, and the user's viewer grade. The informationanalysis unit 130 includes a user information-analysis unit 131 thatanalyzes the viewer grade based on the user information, and abroadcast-information-analysis unit 132 that analyzes the TV programratings by extracting the program information from the broadcastsignals.

The operating-time checking unit 140 checks the operating time of thedisplay apparatus 100. For example, when a user turns on the displayapparatus 100, the operating-time checking unit 140 activates a timer tocheck and record the turn-on time and the operating time of the displayapparatus 100 at regular intervals.

The ratings-comparison unit 150 compares the user's viewer grade withthe TV ratings analyzed by the information-analysis unit 130. Forexample, the received TV ratings are compared with the analyzed viewergrade to thereby determine whether the program ratings are higher orlower than the user's viewer grade.

The lamp-control unit 160 regulates the color and the brightness of thelamps according to the result of the comparison and the information onthe operating time of the display apparatus 100 provided by theoperating-time checking unit 140.

For example, when the user's viewer grade is higher than the ratings ofthe TV program, the lamp control unit 160 lights blue lamps.

When the display apparatus 100 has been operated for less than twohours, the lamp control unit 160 performs a first-stage lighting (lowdegree of brightness). At tnis time, the color of the lamps to be lit isdetermined by the result of the comparison performed by theratings-comparison unit 150. As an example, the lamps may be set to blueor red; but this is merely exemplary. The lamps can be a wide variety ofcolors. The colors of lamps will be described in more detail withreference to FIG. 2.

The storage unit 170 stores user information and program informationanalyzed by the information-analysis unit 130 as well as the watchinghistory of a viewer of the display apparatus 100. The storage unit 170also stores color information of the lamps according to the viewergrade, TV ratings and the operating time of the display apparatus 100.The color information of the lamps is stored in the storage unit 170 fora certain period of time, and is not lost when the display apparatus 100is turned off.

For example, even if a child watched a specific program via the displayapparatus 100 and turned off the display apparatus 100, his/her parentscan check information on the program that the child watched, which wasstored in the display apparatus 100. The tables stored in the storageunit 170 illustrated in FIG. 2 will be described in detail in thefollowing.

The display unit 180 displays a broadcast program according tobroadcasting signals received by the signal-receiving unit 110 and alsodisplays the user's viewing information, which is stored in the storageunit 170 at the user's request (the user refers to parents of the childwho watched the display apparatus 100). The viewing information of thedisplay apparatus 100 includes detailed program information and theoperating time of the display apparatus 100.

When broadcasting signals are received by the signal receiving unit 110,the control unit 190 manages processes in such a manner that the signalreceiving unit 110 transmits the received signals to thebroadcast-information analysis unit 132, the broadcast-informationanalysis unit 132 analyzes the program information of the receivedbroadcasting signals and extracts ratings of the program, and theinformation-input unit transmits the user information input therethroughto the user-information analysis unit 131 in order to analyze andextract the user's viewer grade.

The control unit 190 also controls processes in such a way that theoperating-time checking unit 140 checks the operating time of thedisplay apparatus 100, and transmits the actual operating time to thelamp-control unit 160 to thereby allow the lamp control unit 160 toregulate the brightness of the lamps.

The control unit 190 sends the ratings-comparison unit 150 the user'sviewer grade and the TV ratings analyzed by the user-informationanalysis unit 131 and the broadcast information analysis unit 132respectively, and the ratings comparison unit 150 compares the user'sviewer grade with the TV ratings to determine whether the user's viewergrade is higher or lower than the TV ratings.

The control unit 190 also sends the result of the comparison made by theratings-comparison unit 150 to the lamp control unit 160 in order todetermine the colors of the lamps.

The control unit 190 controls the display unit 180 so that the viewinghistory of the user of the display apparatus 100 can be displayed athis/her parents' request.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are a set of tables showing information on TV ratingsand brightness of lamps according to the viewing time stored in thestorage unit of the display apparatus, which displays the viewing timeand the TV ratings based on the viewer grade, according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A illustrates a table matching color information of lamps with auser's age (viewer grade) and TV ratings. In FIG. 2A, the rows of thetable indicate viewer grades 12 and the columns indicate TV ratings 11.

As illustrated, if the TV ratings are the same as or lower than theviewer grade (user's age) 12, blue lamps are lit. If the TV ratings arehigher than the viewer grade, the red lamps are lit. However, the redlamps are not always lit when the TV ratings are higher than the user'sviewer grade. The percentage of blue or red lamps to be lit may bedifferent according to the gap between the TV ratings and the user'sviewer grade. Blue and red lamps are an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention, as the lamps are not limited to these colours;various colored lamps can be used.

For example, if the TV ratings indicate that the program is consideredto be suitable for the age of 3 and above, and the viewer grade (whichcorresponds to the viewer's age) is 6, blue lamps are lit. If the TVratings indicate that the program is considered to be suitable for theage of 19 and above, and the viewer grade is 14, the red lamps are lit.

If TV ratings indicate that the program is considered to be suitable forthe age of 15 and above, and the viewer grade is 13, the blue and thered lamps are lit in an alternating manner. Alternating blue and redlamps implies that the gap between the TV ratings and the viewer gradeis small.

In the present exemplary embodiment of the invention, the TV ratings aredivided into 4 ratings, and viewer grades are divided into 5 gradesaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, but thisis only exemplary. The TV ratings and viewer grades can be dividedaccording to the user's setting or another technique.

FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating tables showing the brightness of thelamps according to the operating time of the display apparatus.

As illustrated, if the operating time 21 of the display apparatus 100 isless than 4 hours, the brightness 22 of the lamp is classified into afirst stage (low brightness). If the operating time 21 of the displayapparatus 100 is less than 8 hours, the brightness 22 is classified intoa second stage (moderate brightness). And if the operating time 21 ofthe display apparatus 100 is more than 8 hours, the brightness 22 isclassified into a third stage (maximum brightness).

For example, if the blue lamps are lit and the operating time of thedisplay apparatus 100 is less than 2 hours, the brightness 22 isadjusted to the first stage (low brightness), implying that the bluelamps are lit.

FIGS. 3A to 3E are a set of diagrams illustrating different arrangementsof the lamps of a display apparatus that displays viewing time and TVratings based on the viewer grade according to an exemplary embodimentof the present invention. Herein, the lamps are either red or blue, butother colors may also be used. A single colored lamp is used in anexemplary embodiment of the present invention, but it is also possiblefor a lamp to emit different colors. In the drawings, blue lamps areindicated by solid lines, while red lamps are indicated by dotted lines.When the lamps are lit, the blue lamps are indicated by oblique lines,and the red lamps are indicated by dots.

Lamps 30 are provided in the external case of the display apparatus 100according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, but thelamps may be located anywhere on the display apparatus 100.

As illustrated in FIG. 3A, the display apparatus 100 is equipped withblue and red lamps (30), which are alternately arranged. Here, bluelamps may be arranged in rows, and red lamps may be arranged in columns,and vice versa, or blue lamps may be located on the left side of thedisplay apparatus (100) and red lamps may be located on the right sideof the device.

FIG. 3B illustrates an example of lighting blue lamps when the TVratings are lower than the viewer grade, and FIG. 3C illustrates anexample of lighting red lamps when the TV ratings are higher than theviewer grade.

FIG. 3D illustrates an example of lighting more blue lamps than redlamps, and FIG. 3E illustrates an example of lighting more red lampsthan blue lamps.

For example, if the user is 10 years old and the TV ratings are 12, moreblue lamps are lit than red lamps because the TV ratings are higher thanthe viewer grade but the gap between the TV ratings and the viewer gradeis small (corresponding to a 1-grade difference based on the age of auser).

If the user is 10 years old and the TV ratings are 15, more red lampsare lit than blue lamps because the gap between the TV ratings and theviewer grade is large (corresponding to a 2-grade difference).

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the colors of lamps lit based on the TVratings and the operating time of a display apparatus, according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention. Here, blue lamps areindicated by oblique lines, and red lamps are indicated by dots.

As illustrated, the lamps provided in the display apparatus 100, whosecolors are different, are lit based on the gap between the TV ratingsand the viewer grade. That is, when the TV ratings are the same or lowerthan the viewer grade, blue lamps are lit. When the TV ratings are verydifferent from the viewer grade (i.e., beyond the suitable grade), morered lamps than blue lamps begin are lit, and finally only red lamps arelit.

That is, the farther the TV ratings are from the viewer grade, thegreater the number of red lamps that are on, and the greater the numberof blue lamps that are off.

The brightness of the lamps 30 depends on the operating time of thedisplay apparatus 100. The operating time of the display apparatus 100means the viewing time of a user.

The longer the viewer uses the display apparatus 100 (that is, thelonger the viewer watches the display apparatus), the brighter the lamps30 become (for example, up to 100% brightness), and the shorter theviewer uses the display apparatus 100 (that is, the shorter the viewerwatches the display apparatus), the darker the lamps 30 become (forexample, down to 10% brightness).

For example, if the blue lamps are lit and a viewer has been using thedisplay apparatus for over 8 hours, the blue lamps on the display devicebecome the brightest they can be.

Thus, even if a child watched the display apparatus while his/herparents were out, the parents can later check which programs and howlong their child watched the programs based on the brightness of thelamps equipped in the external case of the display apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating a method of displaying the viewingtime and TV ratings based on a viewer grade according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention.

When the display apparatus 100 is turned on S100, the control unit 190operates and controls each unit built therein to check information on aviewer and operation of the display apparatus S110.

First, the information input unit 120 receives user information input bya user. Then, the control unit 190 transmits the input user informationto the user-information analysis unit 131. The user-information analysisunit 131 analyzes the received user information to extract a viewergrade (that is, the user's age) S120.

The signal receiving unit 110 receives signals broadcasted by abroadcasting station, and the control unit 190 transmits the broadcastedsignals to the broadcast-information-analysis unit 132. Thebroadcast-information-analysis unit 132 extracts information on a TVprogram from the broadcasted signals to determine the ratings of theprogram S130.

Then, the control unit 190 transmits both the viewer grade analyzed bythe user-information-analysis unit 131 and the TV ratings analyzed bythe broadcast-information-analysis unit 131 to the ratings comparisonunit 150, and then the ratings comparison unit 150 compares the viewergrade with the TV ratings S140.

Finally, the ratings-comparison unit 150 transmits the comparison resultto the control unit 190, and then the control unit 190 transmits theresult to the lamp-control unit 160. The lamp-control unit 160 lightslamps corresponding to the transmitted result S150.

The comparison of the viewer grade with the program ratings is detailedin FIG. 6. The ratings comparison unit 150 searches for the TV ratingsaccording to the user's age with reference to the table, which matchescolor information of lamps to be lit according to the user's age and theTV ratings that are stored in the storage unit 170 S141.

Then, the ratings comparison unit 150 compares the TV ratings with theviewer grade. If the viewer grade is higher than the TV ratings S142,the lamp control unit 160 turns on the blue lamps S143.

And, if the viewer grade is lower than the TV ratings S142, the ratingscomparison unit 150 calculates the gap between the viewer grade and theTV ratings.

When the gap between the viewer grade and the TV ratings is one grade(or 2 or 3), the lamp-control unit 160 lights blue and red lampstogether S144 and S145. When the gap between the viewer grade and the TVratings is greater than one grade, the lamp control unit 160 lights redlamps S146. The ratio of blue to red lamps may vary when blue lamps andred lamps are lit together.

The control unit 190 informs the operating time checking unit 140 thatthe display apparatus 100 is operating as soon as the display apparatus100 starts operating, and then the operating-time-checking unit 140operates a timer to record the operating time of the display apparatus100, and continuously checks the operation at regular intervals S160.

The control unit 190 transmits the checked operating time to thelamp-control unit 160, and the lamp control unit 160 determines thebrightness of lamps based on the operating time of the display apparatus100, which is provided by the control unit S170.

The process of controlling the brightness based on the operating time ofthe display apparatus 100 will be described in more detail withreference to FIG. 7. As illustrated, the ratings-comparison unit 150detects the brightness of the lamps, which is matched with the operatingtime checked by the operating-time-checking unit 140, by referring tothe table that stores information on the lamp brightnesses linked to theoperating time of the display apparatus stored in the storage unit 170S161.

Then, the ratings-comparison unit 150 transmits information on thebrightness of the lamps matched with the checked operating time to thelamp-control unit 160. The lamp control unit 160 adjusts the brightnessof lamps according to the operating time of the display apparatus 100based on the brightness information of the lamps S163.

Therefore, according to the colors of the lamps, which are determinedbased on the ratings of the TV program watched by a user and the timethe display apparatus that was operated by the user, his/her parents areable to know which TV program and how long their child watched thedisplay apparatus.

Referring to the color of lamps provided in the external case of thedisplay apparatus 100, a child can also understand the ratings of theprogram that he/she is now watching, and the operating time of thedisplay apparatus, whereby the child can regulate the TV viewing timevoluntarily and/or try to select a program suitable for his/her age.

An exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described inthe following. It is assumed that a user who wants to watch a TV programis 12 years old, that user information is stored in the TV, and that theuser will watch the TV program for 3 hours.

When a user turns on the TV, the operating-time-checking unit 140 checksand records the time when the TV starts operating.

Program information is extracted from the signals broadcasted by abroadcasting station, with which the TV ratings thereof are analyzed.The analyzed TV ratings show that the program is suitable for the age of19 and above.

The ratings-comparison unit 150 compares the set viewer grade (the ageof 12) with the analyzed TV ratings, under which the age of 19 and abovecan watch the program, whereby it is judged that the broadcasted programis outside the grade range permitted to the user.

Then, the lamp control unit 160 lights red lamps, and adjusts the redlamps to the moderate degree of brightness according to the hours of TVwatched (three hours).

Therefore, the parents can know the ratings of the TV programs watchedby their child and the TV viewing time at a glance.

As described above, a method of and an apparatus for displaying TVratings based on a viewer grade may have at least one of the followingeffects.

The ratings of a TV program that a viewer watched and the operating timeof the display apparatus (that is, a TV set) are indicated by colors oflamps equipped in the external case of the TV. Thus, the viewer'sparents can find out which TV program and how long their child watchedalone.

In addition, since the colors of lamps according to the ratings of theTV program watched by the user and those according to the length of timethe user watched TV are indicated through the lamps of the external caseof the display apparatus 100, the child can regulate his/her TV watchingtime voluntarily and/or select a program suitable for his/her age.

Further, since information is visualized through the lamps, it is easyfor the viewer to obtain information on a user's viewing, and thereforeit is an efficient user interface.

It will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that variousreplacements, modifications and changes in form and details may be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the presentinvention as defined by the following claims. Therefore, it is to beappreciated that the above described embodiments are for purposes ofillustration only and not to be construed as limitations of theinvention.

1. A display apparatus for displaying a viewing time and ratings ofviewed material based on a viewer grade, the apparatus comprising: aninformation analysis unit which analyzes the viewer grade based on userinformation, and ratings of viewed material; a ratings comparison unitwhich compares the viewer grade with the ratings of viewed material; anoperating time checking unit which checks and records an operating timeof the display apparatus; and a light-control unit which lights aplurality of lights provided in an external case of the displayapparatus according to the comparison result, and adjusts a brightnessof the plurality of lights according to the operating time of thedisplay apparatus; wherein the light-control unit increases thebrightness of the plurality of lights as the operating time increases,wherein the plurality of lights light in different colors and thepercentage of the different colors to be lit is determined according tothe comparison between the viewer grade and the ratings of viewedmaterial.
 2. The display apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: astorage unit which stores the user information, program information andviewing history of the user of the display apparatus.
 3. The displayapparatus of claim 1, wherein the user information is input by a user ofthe display apparatus.
 4. The display apparatus of claim 1, wherein theratings of viewed material are analyzed by extracting programinformation from signals broadcasted by a broadcasting station.
 5. Amethod of displaying viewing time and ratings of viewed material basedon a viewer grade, the method comprising: inputting user information ofa user using a display apparatus; analyzing the viewer grade based onthe input user information, and the ratings of viewed material;comparing the analyzed viewer grade and the ratings of viewed material;checking and recording an operating time of the display apparatus; andlighting a plurality of lights provided in the external case of thedisplay apparatus according to the comparison result, and adjusting abrightness of the plurality of lights according to the operating time ofthe display apparatus; wherein the adjusting the brightness comprisesincreasing the brightness of the plurality of lights as the operatingtime increases, wherein the plurality of lights light in differentcolors and the percentage of the different colors to be lit isdetermined according to the result of the comparing operation betweenthe viewer grade and the ratings of viewed material.
 6. The method ofclaim 5, wherein a viewing history of a user of the display apparatus isstored and is provided at the user's request.
 7. The method of claim 5,wherein the analyzing of the ratings of viewed material is performed byextracting program information from signals broadcasted by abroadcasting station.